30/10/2026
Thank you to the Irish Daily Mirror for sharing Erika Mulligan's experience and helping to bring greater awareness to endometriosis.
We appreciate Erika's openness in contributing to this important conversation and highlighting the challenges women can face when navigating endometriosis.
Dr Antonio Ierullo, who features in Erika's story, will also be hosting an upcoming FREE Endometriosis Webinar with us next month. This will provide an opportunity to learn more about the condition, explore treatment options and ask questions in an informative setting.
Further details and registration information can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1SExVEazUH/?mibextid=wwXIfr đź’š
A woman has spoken of starting her life again after undergoing surgery for endometriosis in Spain, using an EU law to get it for free. ❤️
Erika Mulligan, from Rush, Co. Dublin, says she spent 12 years of hell trying to get Irish hospitals to believe she was ill. 🙏🥺
The 26-year-old only found out how extensive her endometriosis was when she met Dr Antonio Ierullo in Madrid.
Endometriosis is a chronic condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb (the endometrium) grows outside the uterus, most commonly on pelvic organs like the ovaries, fallopian tubes, outer surface of the uterus, bowel, or bladder.
Erika, a customs company executive, travelled with Irish medical concierge organisation Medinet Ireland which arranged the surgery through the EU Cross Border Directive.
“I feel like I am beginning a new life,” said Erika.
“I don’t think my life has been normal since the age of 14. I had heavy prolonged periods and I was told by medical professionals that it was just part of womanhood, just part of growing up.
“I was constantly being fobbed off but the excruciating pain never went away. I even had suspected appendicitis and I had my appendix removed but it turned out it was the endometriosis and my appendix was fine.”
Finally diagnosed in 2023, she had surgery in Ireland in 2025 only for her GP to later discover that nodules had been halved rather than removed.
“I was told my medical records had been lost but I eventually got them through a Freedom of Information request,” said Erika.
“My GP was horrified. I had been left in the dark about my condition for years and then when I did get surgery it was incomplete according to my doctor. I was in and out of four different hospitals without success.”
Erika travelled with her family for a holiday in Nejra last month before her dad and auntie accompanied her on the trip for surgery in Madrid.
Her surgeon Dr Ierullo is an experienced endometriosis specialist in non-invasive surgery who has worked at world-class hospitals in London, Barcelona, Amsterdam and in Pavia near Milan in his native Italy.
“The team at the hospital were so lovely,” said Erika, speaking three weeks after surgery.
“Of course I was nervous but Dr Ierullo was so reassuring. He just told me straight that he was going to tackle the endo and sort me out.
“I had a specialist scan and he was able to show my dad where the endo had been attacking my internal organs and I think that’s the first time my dad really understood what was happening to me.
“Dr Ierullo was able to remove tissue from my cervix, ovaries and fallopian tubes. I was worried that I might never be able to have children. He saved me.” 👏👨‍⚕️
